Our wellbeing was threatened. Our livelihoods were in question. Our relationships were tested. And once again, we had to confront our personal faith, to decide if our relationship with Jesus could surpass the weekly social gatherings that we have come to know and love as “church”.
Yet, as we navigated through the crisis of COVID-19 with the best of our human abilities, adapting to the new normal and creating new ways to connect and to worship, we continue to see the hand of God moving so evidently within City Harvest Church—among our leadership, our staff, our zones, our cell groups and in the lives of our members.
The Word that has sustained us through much of the last decade remains true for us today:
"We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love." (Romans 5:3-5, NLT)
Our senior pastor, Kong Hee, shared at the start of 2021 that, in this season, God has pressed the “pause” or “reset” buttons for us because He is preparing us for the next move of God!
As His church, we must pattern our lives after Christ, Who says in John 12:27-28: “I have come for this purpose, to glorify my heavenly Father”. The chief end of our existence, both corporately and individually, must be to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
Let’s live out this purpose wholeheartedly, resolute in our confidence, because, “Those who stand firm during testing are blessed. They are tried and true. They will receive the life God has promised to those who love him as their reward” (James 1:12, CEB).
City Harvest Church, thank you for always loving Jesus, His house and one another so genuinely and unreservedly. We hope that you will join your faith and prayer with ours, believing that God’s plans and purposes for us will be fully established as we set our hearts daily to follow after Him.
In Christ’s Love,
Senior Management Team
Emerge Events
Academic Excellence workshop
Academic Accelerator programme
Pillars of Faith (8 sessions)
Emerge Water Baptism
Come Play Play (Organised by Higher)
City King (Organised by Higher)
| Bhutan | 1 |
| Bulgaria | 1 |
| Cambodia | 1 |
| Canada | 2 |
| China/Hong Kong/Taiwan | 55 |
| India | 4 |
| Indonesia | 23 |
| Japan | 1 |
| Malaysia | 16 |
| Myanmar (Burma) | 1 |
| Philippines | 25 |
| Singapore | 116 |
| Vietnam | 1 |
AUSTRALIA
City Church Sydney
El Shaddai Creative
Community Church (Sydney)
HONG KONG
Alpha Assembly
Arise Church
INDIA
Super Vincimus
Victory Church Jalandhar
Bethel Mission Church
INDONESIA
Alfa Omega Church
El Shaddai Creative Community Church
Home Community Church
Inspire Community Center
GPdI Bukit Hermon
GPdI Lippo Cikarang
Father's House Community Church
GPdI Karmel - Jakarta
GPdI Pillars in Christ
Indonesia Council on Local Church
Gereja Bethany Indonesia Malang
GPdI Maranatha - Malang
Indonesia Harvest Church
GPdI Elohim
GPIA Community Harvest Church
Grace Community Church
JAPAN
Fukuoka Harvest Church
Kumamoto Harvest Church
MALAYSIA
Tabernacle of God
City Harvest Church Ipoh
Faith Harvest Church
Glory Christian Centre
Kuala Lumpur Harvest Church
City Harvest Church Kuching
City Harvest Church Prai
City Harvest Church Sitiawan
MYANMAR
Myanmar Harvest Church
PHILIPPINES
City Light Church
Unbound City Church
Dwelling Place Global City Church
World Harvest Church
TAIWAN
Jiu Qu Tang Church
Fire City Harvest Church
Passion 99 Harvest Church
Christ Harvest Church
Life Harvest Church
USA
City Harvest Church Orange County
VIETNAM
Agape New Generation Church
CHC’s 30
For the second year running, CHC held its annual gathering for The Harvest Network of affiliated churches and ministry leaders from the world over.
THN brings together like-minded churches and ministries to pursue a fresh revival of the Holy Spirit. THN provides support to the pastors and key leaders of these churches and ministries through discipleship, training and consistent spiritual guidance. Membership is by invitation only.
| Event Name | Organiser | Period |
| Planetshakers Praise Party | Planetshakers (Singapore) | 27 January |
| FCBC Combined Service 2019 | Faith Community Baptist Church | 31 March |
| USANA Asia Pacific Convention 2019 | USANA Health Sciences Singapore Pte Ltd | 24-26 April |
| Voice of Legends | Meshana Media Pte Ltd | 18-19 July |
| Shreya Ghoshal - The Language of Love | De Ideaz Pte Ltd | 25-26 July |
| Day of His Power 2019 | Bethesda Bedok Tampines Church | 8 August |
| Rahet Fateh Ali Khan - Live in Concert | De Ideaz Pte Ltd | 15-16 August |
| CASIO Product Launch | CASIO Singapore Pte Ltd | 22-23 August |
| Sonu Nigam - High on Music | De Ideaz Pte Ltd | 17-18 October |
| 26th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems | MCI Group Asia Pacific Pte Ltd | 20-21 October |
| Masters of the Century | Success Resources Singapore Pte Ltd | 22-24 October |
| Yesterday Once More | SY Cube Pte Ltd | 25-27 October |
| Muzika Ekstravaganza 2019 | MediaCorp Pte Ltd | 1 November |
| Joi Chua Flow Concert | IMC Captasia Group (S’pore) Pte Ltd | 28-29 November |
| International Bhojpuri Film Award (IBFA 2019) | VVS Ship Management Pte Ltd | 5-6 December |
| Boyz II Men Live in Singapore 2019 | IMC Captasia Group (S’pore) Pte Ltd | 8-9 December |
| ITZY Showcase in Singapore | Live Nation Singapore Concerts Pte Ltd | 12-13 December |
To help our members who are currently facing financial difficulties due to this pandemic, CHC and City Harvest Community Services Association (CHCSA) launched the Care Fund initiative.
Meals sponsored by Pope Jai Thai—offering our Care Fund applicants a week’s worth of meals for their entire household.
Marketplace Employment is a new feature on The CHC App that allows members who are business owners to advertise job vacancies; while Marketplace Promotion is a platform for retail/F&B businesses to offer exclusive promotions to our app users.
When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out and all face-to-face visitations and church services came to a standstill, Harvest Kidz was challenged to think out of the box and adapt in its aim to bring God into the homes of the little ones.
Pastor Eileen prayed and God spoke to her to teach the children about the “Armour of God”; a lesson on God’s protection during challenging times. The first series of lessons was recorded and posted on social media in February 2020. Harvest Kidz has since posted 46 online lessons in 2020! Harvest Kidz officially went online on 17 Feb 2020. God continued to inspire the team to come up with ideas to engage the children and their families.
To ensure interaction and connection, Harvest Kidz launched their weekly online services via Zoom in May, conducting a full children’s church service with games, praise and worship, Bible lessons and discussions; all via Zoom. There was positive feedback and many testified that the presence of God was evident. To date, a total of 11 to 12 Zoom services are held each weekend to cater to the different age groups of children.
Besides the online activities, Harvest Kidz also adopted practical ways of reaching out to the children, such as care cards and mailing of gifts during festive celebrations like Easter, Children’s Day and Christmas. The team went to great lengths to convey their care and love and prayers for the children. Harvest Kidz volunteers and staff also phoned the children regularly to pray with them and encourage them with the message that Jesus is never too far from them!
Our Chinese Service had to adapt and adjust as the nation entered the Circuit Breaker, followed by Phase 2 and Phase 3. The team came together to brainstorm on various ways to connect with members via the digital platforms. This included WhatsApp, WeChat, cell group meetings via Zoom and phone calls. Follow up was tight and our Chinese Service workers wanted to be there for the members as a pillar of support in times of uncertainty.
Chinese Service cell group leaders and connect group leaders were proactive in helping members to set up and use the Zoom app on their phones. They went to the extent of recording videos detailing step by step instructions, which was much needed for a fair number of senior members who were not digitally savvy. The sense of ownership and initiative cascaded down to the members who rose to the occasion by helping one another out, even to the point of meeting up and teaching those who were unfamiliar with digital platforms.
In order for members to stay connected to the church, as well as to be a support and encouragement to them, the Chinese Service held more online activities for the members to join. This included:
Although the year 2020 was challenging for the Dialect Service, it also proved to be a most fruitful year. The team of workers and volunteers for the Dialect Services came up with creative ideas to connect with the Dialect members, most of whom are elderly and vulnerable.
As community cases of COVID-19 grew during the year, many of the elderly were fearful. However, our Dialect Service workers encouraged them by sharing Scripture and praying for them; doing whatever they could to strengthen their faith and hope in Jesus. Other than regular visitation and calling the elderly by phone, they also delivered Blessings Packs to the members every quarter of 2020.
On the digital front, the Dialect Service weekly uploaded a pre-recorded sermon on YouTube as well as a radio programme on CityRadio titled “广多多 福气话”. Their online weekend service was held via Zoom and some of the volunteers gathered the elderly in small groups for watch parties to enjoy the service together. This was something the elderly looked forward to very much.
Dialect Service had also produced a short film titled “家 • 不孤单” or “Family • Not Lonely”. The story was about an elderly woman who struggles with the fear of abandonment, and how her life turns around after she receives Christ into her heart. The film which was posted on YouTube has received many testimonies from viewers who have been blessed by it.
For our Jesus for All Minds (JAMs) members, it can be quite a struggle to break a routine they’ve been used to. The JAMs service is a weekly highlight for our special needs members; but in 2020, this came to a halt. This was difficult not only for the JAMs members and their caregivers, it was also a challenge for the JAMs workers and volunteers. Home visits could not be conducted during the Circuit Breaker and the only way to reach out to the members was through phone calls.
The JAMs team had to quickly adapt to the circumstances and sprang into action to bring the JAMs service experience online. The staff and volunteers filmed their own praise and worship, sermon and Bible quiz and posted these up on YouTube and Instagram on a weekly basis. On alternate weeks, JAMs conducted online service via Zoom. Once the nation moved into Phase 2 of the Circuit Breaker, the ministry workers and volunteers could finally visit the members. The JAMs members were elated to see their teachers again!
As of 31 Dec 2020, there were 40 YouTube clips uploaded, and a total of 34 online services via Zoom were held.
Under the leadership of Pastor Aries, City Harvest’s Indonesian Service resumed on 16 Aug 2020, in celebration of Indonesia’s Independence Day. It was wonderful for the Indonesian community in CHC to gather and get connected once again.
Due to COVID-19, the Indonesian members have not been able to go back to their hometown or see their family. So when the service resumed, there was an overwhelming response. The members were excited and happy to worship God in a familiar setting in Bahasa Indonesia. “Unable to travel, the Indonesian service serves as a “taste of home” to us, something we grew up with. I feel a sense of purpose in serving God and the community here,” said Ishak, a member of the worship team.
The Indonesian Service is currently held once a month and broadcasted via The CHC App and YouTube. On a regular basis, the Indonesian Service cell group leaders also gather with their members in groups of two and three to connect and support one another in the faith. Zoom hangouts enabled the members to fellowship and connect with one another in the community, with new faces joining every once in a while.
Because of this purposeful connection, some of the Indonesian members who had not yet been planted in a cell group, have since started attending cell group regularly. Many members from overseas have also been tuning in, regardless of time zone.
Members of the vibrant Filipino Service wasted no time in adapting to the new norm of online CG meetings and fellowship. In fact, there were testimonies of family members residing in the Philippines who had attended the online cell group meetings and service. On 14 June 2020, the Filipino Service recommenced online service via Zoom, in celebration of the 122nd Philippines Independence Day. Since then, they have been holding regular online services every first and third Sunday of the month.
In August 2020, the ministry, led by Pastor Kenneth, launched the “Love Box Project”, where leaders contributed funds to buy groceries and basic necessities for the families of their members. They were able to bless 61 families in different parts of the Philippines; most were struggling financially due to the pandemic.
Some of the other activities that were conducted in 2020 included online meetings such as Worship Night, Singles and Couples Meeting, SOT Graduation Party, Virtual Christmas Party, SOT Filipino Alumni Reunion, Missions Talk and more.
The Filipino Service played a very important role in strengthening the Filipinos in this challenging season. In light of the travel restrictions, this has truly become a home in City Harvest Church!
